


Away

by raven_lore



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-11-18
Updated: 2009-11-18
Packaged: 2017-10-03 07:28:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raven_lore/pseuds/raven_lore
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He's gone and she must deal with what he left behind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Away

**Author's Note:**

> Season/Spoilers: Spoiler for Threads
> 
> Thanks to: tafkarfanfic for being an incredible person and finding time to do beta for me even when she is so busy. As usual this story has improved a lot thanks to her. And thanks to the_green_sheep who's finally got an lj and can be thanked for her support.
> 
> This story is troyswann 's fault. She asked for moment of day and an object to write 'Daniel touching Sam. And Jack watching.' and when I thought about it I ended up with this. In which there is Daniel and Sam... No Jack. Anyway...

Daniel watches the lake. The water moves, ripples, follows patterns drawn by the hand of the wind.

Somehow it reminds him of the pond by Jack's cabin. He wonders if there are no fish in it as well. Maybe there's something else, something alien. This is an alien planet after all.

Slowly he turns to take it all in: the lake, now behind him; the Stargate, a few yards to his right; the trees, everywhere; and, to his left, the cottage.

It would be easy to mistake it for Earth, even easier to get lulled into a sense of safety. Which would be unreal. There can be no safety with Goau'ld bases in two near solar systems. It is a miracle that they haven't come to this planet yet. Even without knowing the Gate address, it is not too far away by ship. Once more Daniel wonders why they have left this little heaven alone and how long this blessing will last.

With a sigh he walks back towards the cottage. He doesn't want to be here when that happens.

Still, he wishes he could give her more time, but the sun is already descending towards the distant mountains and the SGC is expecting them back before nightfall.

He finds her sitting on the wooden floor, her back against the bed: silent, eyes fixed on the old photo she is holding in her right hand. Her left arm is wrapped around her legs, pulling them up to her chest, close, too close even. She should have trouble breathing, but it doesn't look like she does. There are no tears, no short, ragged breaths.

Daniel sighs: he has been hoping for tears, but she is a strong woman. It's something he usually admires in her, but not in moments like this one, when it prevents her from letting go. Just like Jack: hold everything inside, keep up a brave front, hide the pain. Maybe it's a military thing, but probably not.

He looks around. The single room is mostly as they'd found it: bare. The only furniture are the bed, a table and two chairs: all made of wood, all more practical than anything. Everything else that had marked this place as someone's home, as his home, has already been removed: books packed in a chest; clothes all folded and laid out in three perfect piles on the bed, ready to go into another one; a few personal effects in two smaller containers: one, more alien looking, already placed in the box with the books, the other, a simple wooden box, sitting by her feet.

Somewhere up in the trees a bird sings its goodnight and reminds him that their time is limited. The sun is setting.

He moves forwards and crouches down by her.

"Sam." He keeps his voice low, devoid of any inflection. Let her choose what she needs: comfort, strength, denial, whatever.

She turns to look at him and smiles her soft smile, the one that never reaches her eyes, but shows so much of what is hidden deep inside.

"I'm ready." The lie and the way she almost inadvertently inclines her head tell him all he needs to know.

He reaches out and places a comforting hand on her shoulder. For a moment, she closes her eyes.

A few seconds, that is all she grants herself. Then she looks at him once more and nods.

She reaches for his hand and squeezes it briefly, her gratitude written in the small gesture. Then she pushes herself away from him and from the floor.

A moment later she is on her feet, closing the box with his personal effects, while Daniel puts away the clothes. When he finishes, she is already by the door, holding the book box, the smaller personal ones carefully placed over it.

"Let's go." Daniel says, because he doesn't want her to have to say it.

Together they exit to find a world of lengthening shadows. A fine fog is rising from the lake to play around the trees. Soon the cottage will be enveloped in it as well.

They walk back towards the gate, but after a few feet Daniel is moving alone. He turns, already knowing what he will find.

Sam is there, a couple of steps behind him. Her back to Daniel, she is watching the cottage once more.

Daniel can see why he had chosen it as his secret lair, but once more wonders how he found it, wonders what possessed him to have a secret hideaway so defenseless. He wonders if he would have ever told Sam about it if he hadn't been dying.

Stepping closer to Sam, Daniel sees that she's not just looking at the cottage. She is holding up the picture and she's staring at them both, the photo and the cottage, as if to compare them. In the growing darkness Daniel squeezes his eyes, straining to see the image.

It's a picture of a small wooden cottage, not dissimilar from the one standing in front of them, and by it a man, a much younger man than the one Daniel had met, posing happily with a little girl by his side. The image is a little blurred, eroded by time.

Sam keeps looking. While the fog closes around them and the shadows grow darker, her hand clenches more tightly around the photo.

"It's fading." Sam's voice doesn't betray the turmoil going on inside her, but Daniel knows: he's been hiding a similar weight inside himself. The fading of memories, expressions, little particulars that time keeps stealing. Like the falling darkness is hiding the cottage, so time is taking away from them memories, the faces of their loved ones.

Daniel knows and doesn't have words to comfort her, so he just reaches out again and squeezes her shoulder.

A deep breath later, she puts the picture in her pocket and turns. She doesn't stop until she is by the DHD, keeping her back to the cottage while he dials home.

And then they're passing through, taking with them all that had made the place the last home of Jacob Carter.


End file.
